Pentagon Papers

On 13 June 1971, the New York Times began publication of a secret Department of Defense history of Vietnam War decision making commissioned by Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara toward the end of the Johnson administration. Leaked by former Defense Department analyst Daniel Ellsberg, who believed the revelation might alter the course of the war, the story outraged President Richard M. Nixon, already suspicious of the press, particularly by threatening the president's hoped‐for opening to China. As Nixon's national security adviser, Henry Kissinger, observed in his memoir, The White House Years, “Our nightmare was that … the massive hemorrhage of state secrets was bound to raise doubts [in Peking] about our reliability.” When the Times declined to suspend further publication on its own, Nixon's lawyers won a temporary restraining order from the 2nd Circuit Court in New York. At that point, Ellsberg approached the Washington Post, which picked up and ran the story. Nixon's lawyers sued again in the District of Columbia Circuit Court but failed to demonstrate any substantial damage to national security and lost. On 23 June, they appealed to the Supreme Court, which agreed to review the case in an unprecedented Saturday morning sitting. In the end, the Court likewise found in favor of the newspapers, but despite widespread public belief it set no solid precedents in support of freedom of the press by doing so. Ruling that prior restraint of the press imposed a heavy burden of proof, which the Nixon administration had failed to carry out, it left the possibility open that the government or the military might pursue similar litigation in the future with greater success.

[See also Supreme Court, War, and the Military; Vietnam War: Changing Interpretations.]

Bibliography

• Sanford Ungar, The Papers and the Papers, 1972.
• Lucas A. Powe, Jr., The Fourth Estate and the Constitution, Freedom of the Press in America, 1991

A collection of confidential Department of Defense documents commissioned by Defense secretary Robert S. McNamara in 1967 and that detailed post- World War II U.S. actions concerning the Vietnam War. They were turned over to the press by Defense Department analyst Daniel Ellsburg, and The New York Times began publishing the history on June 13, 1971, followed by publication in the Washington Post. President Richard M. Nixon's lawyers sued in the to suspend publication in the interest of national security but lost.

See the Introduction, Abbreviations and Pronunciation for further details.

For more information on Pentagon Papers, visit Britannica.com.

Popularly known as the Pentagon Papers, the "History of U.S. Decision Making Process on Vietnam Policy" is a forty-seven volume, 7,000-page, 2.5 million-word study that traces the involvement of the United States in Vietnam from World War II to 1968. Four thousand pages of the study consist of republished government documents; the balance comprises historical studies prepared by thirty-six civilian and military analysts and focused on particular events. Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara commissioned the study in 1967 during the administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The Vietnam War had sparked serious dissent within the United States, and U.S. foreign policy was dominated by Cold War thinking that emphasized the importance of containing the spread of communism. Directed by Leslie H. Gelb, the study was completed shortly before Richard M. Nixon was sworn in as president in January 1969. The fifteen copies made were classified "top secret sensitive."

The first volumes of the study reviewed U.S. policy toward Indochina during and immediately following World War II, as well as the U.S. involvement in the Franco–Viet Minh War between 1950 and 1954, the Geneva Conference of 1954, and the origins of insurgency from 1954 to 1960. Most of the study, however, was devoted to the years following the election of President John F. Kennedy in 1960. It included detailed reviews of the overthrow of Ngo Dinh Diem; the Tonkin Gulf episode; the decision to begin and expand the air war against North Vietnam; the decision to deploy U.S. ground forces in Vietnam; the buildup of those forces; the strategy for the use of troops; and the history of the war's diplomacy from 1964 to 1968.

As a history, the Pentagon Papers had shortcomings. The staff did not collect White House documents or conduct interviews, and the Central Intelligence Agency as well as other branches of government with held documents. Because the historical studies were based solely on the collected documents, the subjects analyzed were narrowly conceived and treated.

Believing that the public disclosure of the Pentagon Papers might shorten the war in Vietnam, Daniel Ellsberg, a defense department consultant working at the Rand Corporation, made the study available to the New York Times reporter Neil Sheehan in early 1971. On 13 June 1971 the New York Times published the first of a ten-part series on the Pentagon Papers under a headline that read: "VIETNAM ARCHIVE: PENTAGON STUDY TRACES 3 DECADES OF GROWING U.S. INVOLVEMENT." The opening paragraph of that first article sounded a theme that many thought distilled the salient meaning of this government study: the U.S. government had through successive administrations misled the American public about "a sense of commitment to a non-Communist Vietnam, a readiness to fight the North to protect the South, and an ultimate frustration with this effort."

Initially the Pentagon Papers drew little public attention or comment, but when the United States obtained a temporary restraining order barring the New York Times from publishing its fourth installment, the dry and tedious study captured national attention. The government initiated litigation premised on the claim that further publication would endanger national security at a time when U.S. combat troops were fighting a land war in Vietnam, and proceeded frantically through all three levels of the federal courts. Eventually the Washington Post and other newspapers became involved. On 30 June 1971, in New York Times Co. v. United States,403 U.S. 713, the United States Supreme Court, by a vote of 6 to 3, denied the government's request for a prior restraint on the ground that the government's evidence fell short of what the constitution required. The outcome was widely hailed as a landmark in the history of free press.

The United States criminally prosecuted Ellsberg and Anthony J. Russo, who had helped in photocopying the study, mainly on charges of espionage, but in 1973 U.S. District Judge William M. Byrne dismissed the charges because of government misconduct. There is no evidence that the public disclosure of the Pentagon Papers injured national security as the government contended it would. The disclosure had no discernible impact on the course of the war, did not appreciably reignite the antiwar movement with in the United States, and did not result in the commencement of war-crimes prosecution against high-level U.S. officials.

The entire Pentagon Papers episode was, however, a critical turning point for the Nixon administration, which located with in the White House a group that became known as the "Plumbers Unit." Ostensibly charged with investigating the improper disclosure ("leaks") of classified information, in the fall of 1971 this group burglarized the office of Ellsberg's psychiatrist in search of information about Ellsberg and his accomplices. Nine months later it broke into the headquarters of the Democratic Party at the Watergate building complex in Washington, D.C. Thus, the Pentagon Papers indirectly led to the Watergate scandal, which caused Nixon to resign the presidency on 9 August 1974.

Bibliography

Herring, George C., ed. The Secret Diplomacy of the Vietnam War: The Negotiating Volumes of the Pentagon Papers. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1983.

The Pentagon Papers: The Defense Department History of United States Decision-Making on Vietnam. 4 vols. Boston: Beacon Press, 1971.

Rudenstine, David. The Day the Presses Stopped: A History of the Pentagon Papers Case. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996.

Sheehan, Neil, et al. The Pentagon Papers: As Published by the New York Times, Based on Investigative Reporting by Neil Sheehan. New York: Bantam, 1971.

Ungar, Sanford J. The Papers and the Papers: An Account of the Legal and Political Battle over the Pentagon Papers. New York: Columbia University Press, 1989.

A classified study of the Vietnam War that was carried out by the Department of Defense. An official of the department, Daniel Ellsberg, gave copies of the study in 1971 to the New York Times and Washington Post. The Supreme Court upheld the right of the newspapers to publish the documents. In response, President Richard Nixon ordered some members of his staff, afterward called the “plumbers,” to stop such “leaks” of information. The “plumbers,” among other activities, broke into the office of Ellsberg's psychiatrist, looking for damaging information on him.

The Pentagon Papers, officially titled United States–Vietnam Relations, 1945–1967: A Study Prepared by the Department of Defense, were a top-secret United States Department of Defense history of the United States' political-military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967. Commissioned by United States Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara in 1967, the study was completed in 1968. The papers first surfaced on the front page on the New York Times in 1971.^[1]

Contents 1 Leak 2 Impact 3 Legal case 4 Discoveries 5 Movie 6 See also 7 Bibliography 8 References 9 External links

Leak

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The study was classified as top secret and was not intended for publication, however, contributor Daniel Ellsberg gave most of the Pentagon Papers to New York Times reporter Neil Sheehan, with Ellsberg's friend Anthony Russo assisting in their copying. The Times began publishing excerpts in a series of articles on June 13, 1971.^[2] Street protests, political controversy and lawsuits followed.

To ensure the possibility of public debate about the content of the papers, on June 29, U.S. Senator Mike Gravel (then Democrat, Alaska) entered 4,100 pages of the Papers to the record of his Subcommittee on Public Buildings and Grounds. These portions of the Papers were subsequently published by Beacon Press, the publishing arm of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations.^[3]

Article I, Section 6 of the United States Constitution provides that "for any Speech or Debate in either House, [a Senator or Representative] shall not be questioned in any other Place", thus the Senator could not be prosecuted for anything said on the Senate floor, and, by extension, for anything entered to the Congressional Record, allowing the Papers to be publicly read without threat of a treason trial and conviction.

Later, Ellsberg said the documents "demonstrated unconstitutional behavior by a succession of presidents, the violation of their oath and the violation of the oath of every one of their subordinates", and that he had leaked the papers in the hopes of getting the nation out of "a wrongful war."^[4]

Impact

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The most damaging revelation in the papers was that the U.S. had deliberately expanded its war with carpet bombing of Cambodia and Laos, coastal raids on North Vietnam, and Marine Corps attacks — which had all gone previously unreported in the US.^[5] The revelations widened the credibility gap between the US government and the people, hurting President Richard Nixon's war effort.

Another controversy was that President Johnson sent combat troops to Vietnam by July 17, 1965, after pretending to consult his advisors on July 21–July 27, per the cable stating that "Deputy Secretary of Defense Cyrus Vance informs McNamara that President had approved 34 Battalion Plan and will try to push through reserve call-up."^[6] In 1988, when that cable was declassified, it revealed "there was a continuing uncertainty as to [Johnson's] final decision, which would have to await Secretary McNamara's recommendation and the views of Congressional leaders, particularly the views of Senator [Richard] Russell."^[7]

Some aspects of the war that would later prove controversial, including John F. Kennedy administration's involvement in Vietnam and his major role in sanctioning the overthrow of Vietnamese leader Ngo Dinh Diem, were not revealed in the papers.^[8]

Legal case

Prior to publication, the New York Times sought legal advice. The paper's regular outside counsel, Lord Day & Lord advised against publication but house counsel James Goodale prevailed with his argument the press had a First Amendment right to publish information significant to the people's understanding of their government's policy.

After the publication, Nixon argued Ellsberg and Russo were guilty of felony treason under the Espionage Act of 1917, because they had no authority to publish classified documents.^[9] After failing to persuade the Times to voluntarily cease publication, Attorney General John N. Mitchell and Nixon obtained a federal court injunction forcing the Times to cease publication. The Times publisher Arthur Ochs Sulzberger said:

"Newspapers, as our editorial said this morning, were really a part of history that should have been made available, considerably longer ago. I just didn't feel there was any breach of national security, in the sense that we were giving secrets to the enemy."^[10]

The newspaper appealed the injunction, and the case New York Times Co. v. United States (403 US 713) quickly rose through the U.S. legal system to the Supreme Court.^[11]

On June 18, 1971, the Washington Post began publishing its own series of articles based upon the Pentagon Papers; Ellsberg gave portions to editor Ben Bagdikian. That day, Assistant U.S. Attorney General William Rehnquist asked the paper to cease publication. After it refused, Rehnquist unsuccessfully sought an injunction at a U.S. district court. The government appealed that decision and on June 26, the Supreme Court agreed to hear it jointly with the New York Times case.^[11]

On June 30, 1971, the Supreme Court decided, 6–3, the injunctions were unconstitutional prior restraint and the government failed to meet the heavy burden of proof required for prior restraint injunction. The nine justices wrote nine opinions disagreeing on significant, substantive matters. The ruling is generally considered a victory for an extensive reading of the First Amendment.

Thomas Tedford and Dale Herbeck summarise the reaction of editors and journalists at the time:

As the press rooms of the Times and the Post began to hum to the lifting of the censorship order, the journalists of America pondered with grave concern the fact that for fifteen days the 'free press' of the nation had been prevented from publishing an important document and for their troubles had been given an inconclusive and uninspiring 'burden-of-proof' decision by a sharply divided Supreme Court. There was relief, but no great rejoicing, in the editorial offices of America's publishers and broadcasters.

—Tedford and Herbeck, pp. 225–226.^[12]

Ellsberg surrendered to authorities in Boston and admitted that he had given the papers to the press. He was later indicted on charges of stealing and holding secret documents by a grand jury in Los Angeles.^[13]

I felt that as an American citizen, as a responsible citizen, I could no longer cooperate in concealing this information from the American public. I did this clearly at my own jeopardy and I am prepared to answer to all the consequences of this decision

—Ellsberg on why he released the Pentagon Papers to the press.^[14]

In March 1972, political scientist Samuel L. Popkin, then assistant professor of Government, was jailed a week, for his refusal to answer questions before a grand jury investigating the Pentagon Papers case, during a hearing before the Boston Federal District Court ^[15]. The Faculty Council later passed a resolution condemning the government's interrogation of scholars on the grounds that "an unlimited right of grand juries to ask any question and to expose a witness to citations for contempt could easily threaten scholarly research." ^[15]

Discoveries

The papers showed that President Lyndon Johnson had planned to bomb North Vietnam well before the 1964 Election. Johnson had been outspoken against doing so during the election and claimed that his opponent Barry Goldwater was the one that wanted to bomb North Vietnam.^[16]

After the release of the Pentagon Papers Goldwater said:

"During the campaign, President Johnson kept reiterating that he would never send American boys to fight in Vietnam. As I say, he knew at the time that American boys were going to be sent. In fact, I knew about ten days before the Republican Convention. You see I was being called a trigger-happy, warmonger, bomb happy, and all the time Johnson was saying, he would never send American boys, I knew damn well he would."^[17]

Movie

The Pentagon Papers (2003) is a historical film directed by Rod Holcomb about the Pentagon Papers and Daniel Ellsberg's involvement in their publication. The movie represents Ellsberg's life starting with his work for RAND Corp and ending with the day on which the judge declared his espionage trial a mistrial.

See also

• Daniel Ellsberg
• Charles Nesson, Ellsberg's counsel.
• Robert S. McNamara
• Leslie H. Gelb
• First Amendment

Bibliography

• The Pentagon Papers: The Defense Department History of United States Decisionmaking on Vietnam. Boston: Beacon Press. 5 vols. "Senator Gravel Edition"; includes documents not included in government version. ISBN 0-8070-0526-6 & ISBN 0-8070-0522-3.
• Neil Sheehan. The Pentagon Papers. New York: Bantam Books (1971). ISBN 0-552-64917-1.
• Daniel Ellsberg. Secrets: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers. New York: Viking (2002). ISBN 0-670-03030-9
• George C. Herring (ed.) The Pentagon Papers: Abridged Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill (1993). ISBN 0-07-028380-X.
• George C. Herring (ed.) Secret Diplomacy of the Vietnam War: The Negotiating Volumes of the Pentagon Papers (1983).

References

1. ^ http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1971/12295509436546-1/#title "The Pentagon Papers: 1971 Year in Review, UPI.com"
2. ^ "INTRODUCTION TO THE COURT OPINION ON THE NEW YORK TIMES CO. V. UNITED STATES CASE". http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/democrac/48.htm. Retrieved on 2005-12-05. 
3. ^ "The Pentagon Papers, Senator Mike Gravel edition, Beacon Press". http://worldcat.org/oclc/248181?tab=editions. 
4. ^ http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/07/02/1331255
5. ^ Frum, David (2000). How We Got Here: The '70s. New York, New York: Basic Books. p. 43. ISBN 0465041957. 
6. ^ Mtholyoke.
7. ^ John Burke and Fred Greenstein, How Presidents Test Reality: Decisions on Vietnam, 1954 and 1965 (1989) p. 215 n. 30.
8. ^ Frum, David (2000). How We Got Here: The '70s. New York, New York: Basic Books. pp. 40–41. ISBN 0465041957. 
9. ^ "The Pentagon Papers Case". http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB48/nixon.html. Retrieved on 2005-12-05. 
10. ^ http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1971/12295509436546-1/#title "The Pentagon Papers: 1971 Year in Review, UPI.com
11. ^ ^{a b} "New York Times Co. v. United States, 403 U.S. 713 (1971)". http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/cases/403us713.htm. Retrieved on 2005-12-05. 
12. ^ "Tedford & Herbeck, Freedom of Speech in the United States, 5 ed.". http://www.stratapub.com/TedfordHerbeck/tedford_&_herbeck_freedom_of_speech_in_the_united_states.htm. Retrieved on 2005-12-05. 
13. ^ http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1971/12295509436546-1/#title "The Pentagon Papers: 1971 Year in Review, UPI.com"
14. ^ http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1971/12295509436546-1/#title "The Pentagon Papers: 1971 Year in Review, UPI.com"
15. ^ ^{a b} Richard J. Meislin, Popkin Faces Jail Sentence In Contempt of Court Case, The Harvard Crimson, March 22, 1972.
16. ^ http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1971/12295509436546-1/#title "The Pentagon Papers: 1971 Year in Review, UPI.com"
17. ^ "The Pentagon Papers: 1971 Year in Review, UPI.com"

External links

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Pentagon Papers

• Complete text of the Gravel Edition of the Pentagon Papers with supporting documents, maps, and photos
• "Top Secret: Battle for the Pentagon Papers" a resource site that supports a currently-playing docu-drama about the Pentagon Papers. The site provides historical context, time lines, bibliographical resources, information on discussions with current journalists, and helpful links.
• Official website for "Secrets: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers" by Daniel Ellsberg
• Democracy Now! Special: "How the Pentagon Papers Came to Be Published by the Beacon Press": Mike Gravel and Daniel Ellsberg (audio/video and transcript)
• Nixon Tapes & Supreme Court Oral Arguments
• Podcast of a live panel discussion moderated by Jill Abramson, New York Times managing editor and former Washington bureau chief, marking the 35th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling.
• Article at Ed Moise's Vietnam Bibliography
• 1971 — The Pentagon Papers A report from Steve Holt of WCBS Newsradio 880 (WCBS-AM New York) Part of WCBS 880's celebration of 40 years of newsradio.
• Beacon Press & The Pentagon Papers

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